Chapter 392 - Her Pride As A Noble Was Wounded
Taylor watched as the little girl accepted his handkerchief and wiped the layer of sweat that had formed on her forehead.
'I… Shall keep this until I clean it.' Yvonne felt embarrassed that she had just used his possession even when she did not need it.
However, to play the part that Miss Elna Leopold had set up for her, she did not reject his kind gesture and had accepted this piece of cloth.
The Duke's younger son was not offended but was glad that she chose to keep it with her.
Sadly, the same could not be said for the other girl who had been standing behind them and watching this scene.
"Young Master Tanner, you simply cannot-!
" Elna stated her objection to what had just happened but her voice did not reach the boy's ears.
As though he had been struck by lightning, Taylor's eyes widened as he fixed his eyes on Yvonne.
"What did you just call me?
" He clamored in excitement as his mind recalled a certain moment that had just passed.
The little girl was busy folding the handkerchief when this question was asked so someone else spoke up.
"Young Master Tanner?
" Elna answered, assuming that he was talking to her.
This response brought a trace of annoyance to Taylor's face as his eyes remained fixed on the younger girl.
"Vonny, what did you call me earlier?
" He repeated while specifying who he was referring to.
This correction caused Elna's cheeks to redden when she realized that she had spoken out of turn.
The air around them was awkward but Yvonne did not wish to do anything to dissipate it.
However, she had to answer his query so she looked up with confusion apparent in her eyes.
"Do you dislike it, Big Brother Taylor?
" She mumbled in a soft voice which made Taylor feel like a little kitten was scratching his heart.
The little girl's arms were around the doll he had bought for her with his allowance money and she was still holding onto his handkerchief which made her look more pleasing to his eyes.
'Would I ever!?' He shook his head in reply as his eyes glimmered in excitement.
An avid lover of cute and adorable beings, Taylor was overjoyed when she addressed him in this way.
'Now let's see how he will react to this news!' He grinned while thinking of his best friend who often boasted that he was Yvonne's only big brother.
The little girl eyed him suspiciously when she saw traces of mischief laced in his eyes but thinking of how she had just used him to mess with Elna, she chose to let him be.
'I shall deal with the problems when they arise.' She surmised and was sure that they would certainly arise after what she had just done.
Taylor was jubilant with this advancement in his relationship with this girl who was now his cute little sister.
"Come, Vonny, let's move ahead.
" He smiled while gesturing for her to come along.
Thinking of something, the little girl turned her head around and smiled at the other one present there.
"We almost forgot about you, Miss Leopold. Please join us.
" She proposed, only making Taylor smile at her thoughtful nature.
Feeling his gaze, Elna could only swallow the disrespect that she had faced today as she nodded, trying hard to keep a neutral face.
Since Elna had requested for snacks, he first led the girls to the snacks stall and purchased them what they wished for.
This kind gesture mellowed Elna's anger because of what she had experienced today.
'Don't think that I will forget about what you did.' She narrowed her eyes at the little girl who was walking ahead of her.
The three then strolled around the place and Elna's eyes glinted when she noticed a certain stall.
"Shall we go there?
" She pointed her finger at the stall at a short distance away.
Taylor first looked at Yvonne to see how she reacted and nodded when he saw her eyes sparkle at the sight ahead.
Elna noticed this but pretended to be ignorant as she had other plans.
"My family deals with jewels of every kind so I can help you choose a good one, Miss St. Claire.
" She offered generously as they stepped in its direction.
Yvonne glanced up when she heard this offer but pursed her lips when she saw the smug curve of Elna's lips.
"I would be grateful.
" She nodded with the same angelic smile she had shown earlier.
'I'll just humor her.' She shrugged as she had already done enough for the day.
Elna raised her chin in victory as there was no way that a little girl could know as much as she did about the jewels in the land.
When they reached the store, she took the lead and began explaining different precious stones to the others all while proving that she had a vast knowledge about this.
Taylor loved pretty things but to actually learn more about them was not something he was interested in.
Yvonne, on the other hand, was bored out of her mind as her ears ached at the constant jabbering coming from Elna.
However, while these two were languid in their nods to her words, the manager of this stall was beyond impressed.
"Miss has a keen eye.
" He praised, currying favor to sell more of his items.
Ocular sold the best of the stones available to man however, the ones here were the commonest of them all.
'The rarest of the rare are auctioned by Master to the highest bidder.' He sighed, hoping that one day he'd work in the auction with his Master.
Yet, this girl's sharp eye had impressed him.
There were different stones placed in an aesthetic manner inside glass displays and Elna was pointing at each as she spoke about them.
"And that…
" She paused while leaning closer to the glass box and frowned.
"That is a… low-quality Sapphire. How could you even put that on display?
" She looked up with a frown, shaking her head in disappointment.
She was doted on by her brother and grandfather who often taught her about the jewels they dealt with so within a second she could gauge the quality of a jewel.
"The color is darker, clarity seems murky and the shape is also strange.
" She revealed while stepping away from the display.
The manager who had been impressed with this Young Miss's knowledge earlier was now frowning as his brows furrowed.
"Miss seems to be mistaken about something here.
" He defended his store as there was no way that Ocular could ever sell anything subpar.
Already angered by the little girl earlier, Elna's face fell when she heard this.
Raising her brow in mock amusement, she scoffed at the man and pointed her finger at another stone there.
"Compare the Sapphire with that one then tell me if I was wrong.
" She sneered after her pride as a noble was wounded for being treated this way.
'One look and I can tell that the quality of that sapphire is bad and he dares to talk back to me?' She seethed in anger.
Taylor frowned when he noticed that the other nobles passing by were now looking at them for Elna's voice had been loud.
Yvonne had been enjoying Elna's outburst but disliked the attention they were gaining
Therefore, rolling her eyes she stepped forward and stood next to Elna to take a look at the stone in question.
"You are wrong.
" She declared after taking a single look at the display.
If Elna was angry earlier, now she was furious after hearing this haughty declaration from a girl who knew nothing about jewels.
"Is that so?
" She raised her brows and stared at Yvonne but her clenched jaw testified that she was suppressing her anger.
'Is it my fault that you boast about your knowledge yet can't differentiate one stone from the other?' Yvonne did not answer her but looked at the manager.
"That is a Tanzanite while this is a sapphire. Of course, they would be different.
" She disclosed while pointing at each stone as she spoke.
Similar in color but different compositions. A sapphire was blue while tanzanite held shades of blue mixed with violet which had caused Elna to call it 'low quality'.
"Tanzanite? How have I never heard this name, Miss St. Claire?
" Elna spoke up before the manager could either accept or reject that answer.
Yvonne froze when she heard this which made Elna believe that she was right and this little girl was making up names to attract attention from others.
'Did that Blue bird give it a different name in this world?' She wondered if she was truly wrong this time.
"How did this Miss know that it is a Tanzanite?
" A new voice came from behind, bringing their attention to the person who had appeared out of nowhere.
Yvonne was still thinking about whether the name of the stone had been changed in this world when she heard this voice.
The three children turned around and frowned at what they saw.
From the deep voice they had heard, they inferred that this person was a man but they could not make out anything else about him.
The cause of this was the thick brown robe he was wearing, covering everything from the top of his head to his toes.
The hood covering his face hindered them from taking a peek but someone had succeeded when he had raised his head just for a second.
'Those eyes…' The little girl's brows furrowed when she caught a glimpse of his face.